1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mobile telephones or cellular phones used in automobiles. More particularly, the present invention relates to a hands-free mobile telephone or cellular phone unit for use in an automobile.
2. Description of Related Art
The use of cellular phones within an automobile is well known as providing a convenient means of communication. To better serve drivers, cellular phones have been mounted in a number of places within an automobile. For instance, cellular phones have been placed in the central console between the driver and the passenger seats or alternatively have been placed in the dashboard. U.S. Pat. No. 5,418,316 discloses a combined radio and telephone unit that is mounted in the center console of an automobile. U.S. Pat. No. 5,202,913 teaches placement of the mobile phone unit within a recess of a dashboard.
As the roads and highways become increasingly crowded, it becomes imperative that a driver""s concentration be distracted as little as possible. It has been discovered that the use of cellular phones by the driver of a vehicle constitutes a significant road hazard, especially during the period when the driver is either dialing or answering the phone.
To address the problem, a number of attempts have been made to locate the cellular phone within a vehicle or provide convenient hands-free use. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,015 teaches a cellular phone for use in a vehicle where the telephone is mounted on the steering wheel. With the advent of air bags and crowding of numerous other controls upon the steering wheel, such as radios or cruise control, the usefulness of a steering wheel mounted cellular phone has become minimized.
Attempts have also been made to improve the placement of the phone, while concealing the phone when not in use. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,875,229 and 4,056,696 teach a cellular phone mounted on a sun visor where the phone can be hidden from view by tilting the visor up when not in use.
Vehicular cellular phones have also been designed to allow for hands-free operation or use of the telephone without a handset. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,270 teaches a cellular telephone where the microphone is mounted on a vehicle sun visor. Sounds are picked up by the microphone and then FM transmitted to a receiver in the vehicle before the communication signal is sent outside the vehicle.
While present day attempts have been made to improve the convenience of a cellular phone""s location within a vehicle, as noted above, such attempts have failed to improve the overall safety associated with dialing and answering the phone.
Particularly, present day car phones have failed to provide a means for the driver to answer or dial a cellular phone while concurrently viewing both oncoming traffic in the driver""s forward field of view and upcoming traffic in the rearward field of view.
The present invention addresses the above stated problems, and others, by providing an improved vehicular cellular phone as detailed hereinafter. The subject cellular phone is a rearview mirror combined with a cellular telephone, generally comprising
a rearview mirror housing, said housing including a rearview mirror, cellular phone means, and dialing means for dialing and answering the phone, and
attachment means for attaching the mirror housing to the vehicle,
whereby a driver may dial and answer the cellular telephone while monitoring road conditions in both a forward field of view and a rearward field of view.
The combined rear view mirror and telephone apparatus includes arrangements wherein the cellular phone means is non-removably integrated into said rear view mirror housing is a separate phone that is removably mounted to the rear view housing.
Additionally, the improved rear view mirror and telephone apparatus further comprises the attachment means including a bracket for routing electrical wires between a power source and the phone; fastening means for fastening the bracket to the windshield of the vehicle; and adjustment means for adjusting and fixing the position of the mirror housing relative to the vehicle and to the user of the phone.